Wednesday, August 01, 2012

Sally Hansen GEM Crush

Went into the drugstore for one thing and came out with 3 other things. This sparkly nail polish caught my eye. I love how it's this gray color with chunks of glitter that reflect different colors. I can imagine this as an awesome polish for night life. I also liked the cool red one.

Upon application I found this to be a little different from what I imagined. The finish is hard, but it isn't very glossy. The texture created by the insane amount of glitter in here also detracts from a shiny finish. That means that the polish ended up looking dull and cheap (like middle school/ high school). The glitters didn't reflect to their potential. I think about how you have to have good clarity and cut in a diamond to really show off its potential. So what can you do? Apply a high gloss clear coat over it. This evens out the bumpy glitter texture, and the high gloss means that light reflects better off the glitter particles. I didn't have such a product so I just used any old clear polish in my drawer.

Interestingly, this polish also reflects blue in certain lighting. I tried to illustrate it with the plethora of pictures I have here.

If the full nail is too dramatic for you, you can try using it for tips. I think it's a great look!